House stands by using Rainy Day cash for public education

The Texas House today stood by an amendment allowing the use of $2.3 billion from the Rainy Day Fund — contingent upon its growth by at least that amount this budget cycle — to fund enrollment increases, despite attempts by conservatives to strip it from a school finance bill.

During a debate on the bill’s final passage, State Rep. Phil King, R-Weatherford, urged lawmakers to keep their promise to “preserve the Rainy Day Fund,” arguing that the state might need its savings account in case of a massive hurricane or some other disaster.

But the amendment’s sponsor, State Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, urged lawmakers to stand by her plan to provide school districts with funding for enrollment growth if the Rainy Day Fund expands as expected because of high oil prices and a rebounding economy.

“We can come together and do something reasonable for our constituents,” she said.

The House voted 79 to 65 to keep Howard’s amendment.

At a press conference after the vote, State Sen. Wendy Davis, whose filibuster forced lawmakers into special session, said she was gratified that the House was reconsidering the position it took in the regular session against finding more funding for public education.

She predicted that the Texas Senate would look favorably on the amendment, noting that in the regular session, Senate leaders declined to push for greater funding because of reluctance in the Texas House. She also noted that some leaders have predicted the Rainy Day Fund would grow by as much as $3 billion over the next two years.

Use of the Rainy Day Fund requires a two-thirds vote of both houses of the Legislature. In order for Howard’s amendment to take effect, both the House and Senate will have to adopt the final school finance bill — after it goes to a conference committee — by a two-thirds vote.